Obligations

The side balcony looked drenched from the previous day's snow. The hall was whitewashed and the walls slightly vitiated, but Anthony couldn't condemn the decent apartment his seven-month earning could fetch. "You see, my husband was really strict about keeping the apartment clean", the landlady bragged about the apartment which was gifted from her husband who served in the Canadian Army. Homie leaned to his leg and cocked his head to the right. 'Somebody is enjoying the show', Anthony thought to himself. Settling the landlady, Anthony collapsed onto the couch while Homie wagged his tail, informing Anthony that he was ready to play. Anthony shook his head in denial and stood, his hands reached out to his coat pocket and lifted a notepad. He struckthrough the first sentence.

         1.Buy an apartment. 

"One down, nine to go", Anthony wrapped his arm around the golden-furred Puggle who had already begun his descent from Anthony's grip. Anthony glanced at the wall. He felt a need to paint it, a slight shade of turquoise blue would be nice, he thought, that was her favourite colour. A minute passed and he shrugged her off from his mind.

The New Edinburgh streets were calm, like a still picture painted with great precision by a scrupulous artist. Although Ottawan Christmas was nearing, the city's usual hustles were jeopardized by the endless snowfall. Yet Anthony walked through the snow with Homie, who was clothed and scarfed to get over with the cold. He sat near a bench, brushing off the snowflakes. Meanwhile, Homie squirmed in the snow; already enjoying Christmas. 'Homie liked the snow.', her words captured Anthony's attention. He took out the notepad from his coat and struckthrough the next goal.

      2.Take Homie out for a walk through the snow.

As Anthony watched the Puggle defeating the massive heap of sleet with grave augmented strength, Anthony's thought flickered back to his past life, the life before he chose to live the life of a total stranger.

  His mother used to call him Tony,' the priceless possession' she so dearly held. Yet the withered conscience of his habitual drinker mother couldn't synchronize the meaning of his name with that of his life. In total, his life turned out to become pathetic as she fell into a deep slumber after being diagnosed with liver cancer. If only she knew what she was getting herself into, but again, Anthony was too young to guide his mother from the toils of being a single mom.

Hence He grew amidst sorrows and misfortunes. He tried to make the ends meet, got accepted into a college but fate played nasty tricks on him. He fell prey to his grief, the one that followed him since childhood, it grew by leaps and bounds choking him till one fine April night, he took his life.

The alarm on his phone buzzed exactly at six. Anthony was never a man to wake up early during his past life, but this life of his demanded him to do so. Without complaints, he got ready for his next task.

         3.Join the Violin lessons.

As he headed to Montreal Road which was about two kilometres away from his apartment, he noticed the vast serenity of the dead snow piles. The temperature was around two degrees Celsius, hence Anthony wrapped many layers of clothing around his body. This day was going to be long, he thought to himself.

The chatter and cackle of young brains were audible from a distance as he approached the orphanage. It is quite a boon to dwell in their own happy place despite their adversities, he thought about the children. Seeing him, the crowd cheered and welcomed him. Children were always heartwarming. The subtle affection they provide us with is intoxicating, Andrea's words robbed his senses. Even though she left him with her debts, he felt obliged towards her and her ideals. He bestowed them with presents and wished them Merry Christmas. Down the stairs of the shelter, sat the girl Andrea talked desperately about, Sophie. Although she lost the fortune of sight, the eleven-year-old excelled at recognizing people from their first meet.

"Anthony, is that you?", her innocent voice chimed at the realization of Anthony's presence.

"How are you, Sophie? , Anthony's voice gentled.

It had been two years, Sophie was diagnosed with an ocular tumour evicting her from the wonders of vision. Andrea was the one to consult her during those times. With her absence, it was Anthony's time to make amends.

As he bid farewell to Sophie and the rest of the children after six long hours of chat, he cut crossed the next two tasks from his notepad.

      4.Present gifts to the children at the orphanage.

      5.Spend some time with Sophie.

On his way home, Anthony stopped by Janeville, where Andrea would usually meet one of her patients, Olivia. The lady was senile, blond and around the fifties. She welcomed him, and chatted, just like they did when he first came to Janeville; two months back.

He gifted her the sweater that he knitted for Olivia's grandchild, claiming it to be the one Andrea had weaved. Some lies are best kept hidden. Knitting sweater's usually relieved stress, Andrea once said in her diary.

Anthony struck through the next point:

        6. Knit a sweater for Olivia's grandchild.

Dusk brushed the sheaths of Ottawan lands and dawn arose afterwards like a visitor. Anthony approached at the Anderson's residence. A tall man, around the thirties, advanced towards him.

"George", the man addressed himself.

"Anthony", he shook his hand firmly. The esteemed expression on George's face faded as Anthony announced the reason behind his visit. Resentment crept through his eyes but he hesitated to show them. Anthony left the house after some minutes. He hid behind the snow-covered Red Maple as he watched George and his son approaching the front of the house. His son's eyes gleamed as he watched the new present that awaited him, a new bicycle.

Mission accomplished, Anthony smiled, satisfied and marked the two missions on his notepad.

7. Make things up with George.

8. Present Adam with a bicycle.

The hustles before Christmas Eve was back in the city. People wandered through the streets when Anthony headed back to his room. 'He needed two more tasks to finish', he looked on at his notepad. And he changed the route of his journey, accordingly.

Andrea's Grandma lived nearby to the Ottawa River. Anthony reminisced the last time he met the old soul. She wept on the thought of Andrea. But now, as he met her, she welcomed him like a grandchild she never had. Her eyes bestowed endless tears of content. The bond between Anthony and her was developed a couple of months back, months before all hell broke loose.

Anthony was tired of his life, with the atrocities of living life with miseries, none of the medications or therapy sessions seemed to help him get over his childhood miseries. The thoughts would scream themselves behind Anthony's mind whenever he felt alone. And he was alone in that car, on that day, on the dark streets, and he sped hoping he would hit a tree, hoping he would let go of this worthless life and find a new one in another world. But he never hit a tree, instead, he took a life.

Andrea had to let go of her miserable life. She needed to end all the agony that life gave her. Hence, she struck the accelerator hard. She saw her whole life in a glimpse.

Her parents at Seattle despising the thought of their only daughter living a mortifying life with alcoholism, her patients at the hospital cursing her for the deeds she never did to help them, her broken marriage with George, her only son hating his mother for not being there for him, and then she saw a swift light approaching her and everything stopped.

Anthony handed back Andrea's diary to her Grandma and wished her Merry Christmas. He was obliged to. It was she who showed him the light at the end of the tunnel, who urged him to let go of his past, who helped him to start fresh.

He struck the goal:

9. Pay a visit to Granny.

He looked at the last goal and thought he had a long way to get there.

10. Meet with parents.